Behavioral Health Consortium (BHC)

CHIP pursued and was awarded a Rural Community Opioid Response Program Planning HRSA Grant from mid-2019 through mid 2020. This grant supports the expansion of what was originally known, in 2018 - 2019, as the Jefferson Rural Mental Health Development Network, (Network). The initial Network, funded by an earlier HRSA grant, was composed of Discovery Behavioral Health, East Jefferson Fire and Rescue, Jefferson Healthcare and Jefferson County Public Health.

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Now, in 2020, the BHC includes the original Network Members and has been expanded to include Port Townsend City Police Chief, County Sheriff, Jail Superintendent, Criminal Justice, private local MAT and Counseling Service providers, and an ad hoc committee of several community resource players.

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CHIP is using the RCORP-P funds to lead and facilitate a collective stakeholder approach to the goal of savings lives we might otherwise have lost, reducing recidivism, and ensuring Jefferson County residents in Behavioral Health crisis have access to earlier and local intervention.

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The BHC’s focus is to explore solutions that will address the county’s need to provide improved access to Behavioral Health:

The initial effort is focused on the feasibility of a Crisis Stabilization Center, located in Jefferson County.

If this approach is feasible, the BHC will move on to develop an Implementation Plan for the facility.

If the Crisis Stabilization Center option does not appear feasible, the BHC will move on to develop another option to address the same challenge.